WHAT SCIENCE AND SUPER-ACHIEVERS TEACH US ABOUT HUMAN POTENTIAL

The book

The author

David Shenk is the national bestselling author of five previous books, including The Forgetting ("remarkable" - Los Angeles Times), Data Smog ("indispensable" - New York Times), and The Immortal Game ("superb" - Wall Street Journal). He is a correspondent for TheAtlantic.com, and has contributed to National Geographic, Slate, The New York Times, Gourmet, Harper's, The New Yorker, NPR, and PBS.

January 14, 2010

My wife's iPhone was snatched a few weeks ago on the sidewalk in front of our house (reenactment for our local paper, above). I almost had mine swiped the other night in the exact same way. Our downstairs neighbor has had several taken. Both of my brothers have had their iPhones stolen, and several close friends. I haven't seen national data, but in our Brooklyn neighborhood, iPhone theft is rampant.

On one level, this is not surprising at all. The iPhone is valuable and very easy pickings.

On the other hand, it's plain bizarre that 30 million iPhone owners have to become sitting iDucks. The iPhone is essentially a tracking device; each unit is designed to tell the world where it is at all times. Apple already provides a "Find my iPhone" tracking service to subscribers of their MobileMe service. Is it asking too much for them to take it one step further and program iPhones to reach out to the police the moment they're reported stolen?

Once reported stolen, a snatched-iPhone would automatically:

- send a signal of its serial number and location to a website accessible by the police

- constantly flash "I'm Stolen" on its screen until being reset by the owner or by Apple.

- periodically call its own voicemail and record the ambient conversation

- email photographs to a predesignated address

A technologist could tell me why some of this may be a little harder than it seems, but my larger point is this: with not too much effort, Apple could not only render the iPhone unstealable (and eliminate suspicions that they actually don't mind consumer iPhone theft, since it means more sales), but also help to pioneer the bright side of our surveillance society.

We're hurtling toward a world of total surveillance, and there are obviously aspects of this that we should all find creepy. But there also are some tangible benefits. In a world where everything is recorded and tracked, petty crime and pre-meditated violence should become much, much easier to deter. And that's a very good thing.

Is it too much to ask highly-profitable technology companies to help that bright side emerge sooner rather than later? I'm asking Apple to do its part.

January 13, 2010

Our hearts go out to the Haitian people, and of course we all must help. Here's a link to donate to CARE, one very reliable aid group. (There are many others; check up on charities' reputations at Charity Navigator.)

This tragedy should also be a giant reminder that, when it comes to natural disasters, past is prologue. This shocking map shows how many regions in the U.S. have experienced a major earthquake since 1750. This list shows the major known world earthquakes over the past 1,000 years.

Which begs these questions: Is your city/region at risk? Are your architectural codes and emergency response agencies reasonably prepared for a once-in-200-years disaster? And finally, are you at least a little bit personally prepared?

An excerpt from a series on disaster preparedness I wrote for Slate in 2006:

Four-fifths of the world's major earthquakes occur on the volatile tectonic belt that includes California, Japan, coastal China, Indonesia, and Mexico...[but] the real surprise about earthquakes is how exposed-but-oblivious the rest of us are. Everyone knows about the Great San Francisco Quake of 1906. But how many know that in 1811 and 1812, Missouri and Tennessee experienced three grand earthquakes larger than any ever recorded in California?* In addition, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, and South Carolina have all recorded quakes greater than 7.0 on the Richter scale....Perhaps the most vulnerable place in the nation right now is New York City, which turns out to be the third-most seismically active region east of the Mississippi. Geologists estimate a 20 percent to 40 percent chance of a significant earthquake in the next 50 years in New York, and they make a special point to say that a major quake is also a real possibility. New Yorkers don't worry about earthquakes, but we should--particularly those of us who own property here. What has experts especially concerned is the city's alarmingly high ratio of likelihood-to-preparedness. The vast majority of buildings in New York, including my own brownstone and thousands just like it in my Brooklyn neighborhood, are not built to withstand significant quakes. Boston, by contrast, which faces roughly the same risk, is in much better structural shape. (New York does require earthquake-resistant design in all new buildings.)

January 11, 2010

I'm lucky to have some terrific pre-publication buzz surrounding my book -- amazing blurbs, a rave first review, and a very nice first plug in Time magazine. All is below. Book pubs March 9. (You can pre-order here.)

Praise for THE GENIUS IN ALL OF US

"Empowering...myth-busting...highly readable...entertaining."

-- KIRKUS REVIEWS

"In his forthcoming book The Genius in All of Us: Why Everything You've Been Told About Genetics, Talent and IQ Is Wrong, science writer David Shenk says epigenetics is helping usher in a 'new paradigm' that "reveals how bankrupt the phrase nature-versus-nurture really is.' He calls epigenetics 'perhaps the most important discovery in the science of heredity since the gene.'"

-- "Why Genes Aren't Destiny," January 18, 2010 Time cover story

"The Genius in All of Us is an inspiring and liberating book. It's a powerful antidote to the genetic determinism rampant in the Age of the Genome, and an instructive guide, grounded in science, to living a more enriching life."

--STEVEN JOHNSON, author of The Invention of Air, Ghost Map, Everything Bad is Good for You, Mind Wide Open, Emergence, and Interface Culture

"A great book. David Shenk handily dispels the myth that one must be born a genius. From consistently whacking the ball out of the park to composing ethereal piano sonatas, Shenk convincingly makes the case for the potential genius that lies in all of us. While our genes may provide a nice runway, only hard work and unwavering focus can allow true genius to take flight."

"David Shenk sweeps aside decades of misconceptions about genetics -- and shows that by overstating the importance of genes, we've understated the potential of ourselves. The Genius in All of Us is a persuasive and inspiring book that will make you think anew about your own life and our shared future."

-- DANIEL H. PINK, author of Drive and A Whole New Mind

"This book, both rigorous and accessible, is a close study of the idea of genius, an investigation of popular misconceptions about genetics, and an examination of the American virtue of self-determination. It is written with assurance, insight, clarity, and wit."

"Old fashioned beliefs, a desire to simplify and the remarkable successes of molecular biology led to an undue emphasis on the role of genes in the development of human intelligence. Environmental determinism exists too, but biology and psychology have moved well beyond these extreme positions. The importance of David Shenk's book is that he has made accessible to a wide audience the advances in the understanding of how each person develops. I congratulate him."

-- SIR PATRICK BATESON, FRS, Emeritus Professor of Ethology, Cambridge University; former Biological Secretary of the Royal Society (UK); and co-author, Design For A Life: How Behaviour Develops

"David Shenk freshens and transforms a familiar subject to reveal all the interacting forces and factors that make us who we are. Development is a tricky business and Shenk understands this. By focusing his considerable writing talents on this terribly important topic, he has provided parents, policymakers, and educators with a book that will help them cut through the noise and make sense of every child's development."

-- MARK. S. BLUMBERG, Ph.D., F. Wendell Miller Professor of Psychology, University of Iowa; editor-in-chief, Behavioral Neuroscience; and author, Freaks of Nature: What Anomalies Tell Us about Development and Evolution

"In clear, forceful language, backed up by a boatload of science, David Shenk delivers a message that should be read by every parent, educator, and policy-maker who cares about the future of our children. The Genius in All of Us convincingly debunks the "genes are destiny" argument when it comes to human talent, and will force you to rethink everything from IQ tests and twins studies to child-rearing practices. Shenk's book turns Baby Mozart on his head, and will give pause--a hopeful, empowering pause--to parents who wish to nurture excellence in their children."